Image Copyright, Using Memes on my Website.

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I want to put some funny pictures that I found on the internet on my website but cannot find the original owner to get permission, can you tell me what I should do in this case. The images I would like to use are widespread, and often altered for memes and can be found in places like facebook, tumblr, pinterest etc so it is very difficult to find where they originated.
Cheers

Any use of another party's creative works without permission is likely (in retrospect) to raise the question, "Was it really worth it?" And the implication here is that there is no way for you to foresee the legal backlash of unauthorized use. Always seek permission from owners, or otherwise find a close substitute from a stock photography provider. If by some chance you've happened upon clean versions of the "must-have" images, with a little luck a reverse image search may yield a stock photography provider after which it is in your best interest to "purchase" the images for your own use. On the other hand, if a reverse search points to an individual as the original owner, you will likely have to have that individuals permission to use those images, granted that individual's provided ample proof of image ownership, to which certain stipulations may apply - for example denotations on your site that attribute the image(s) to their rightful owners.

By the way, I'm not an attorney. Intellectual property is just one of my passions. Please don't join the ranks of those who make unauthorized use of images found on the web. For obvious reasons, its not a respectable practice among designers, web entrepreneurs, and professionals in general.

Thanks for your help, I don't want to use images without permission and I have done some reverse image search on TinEye and have no way of knowing who the original owner of the image is out of hundreds to choose from, do you have any tips on finding the owner of an image that is really widespread. I'm new to this so anything will be helpful.
Also if I cannot find the owner, do you think it would be ok to put something on my website like 'reasonable attempts were made to contact owner and if I have used your image without permission please contact me' or is it better to just not use the image.
Thanks for your help

I must admit that finding the "original" source of images can be a daunting task. But if you find those images hosted by a reputable source, with a little luck that source may provide a share option - yielding the code that will allow you to reference those images at your site via HTML. If that source grants you permission, but does not provide the code to reference those images however, you may be able to obtain image URL's by using a right-click. If so, you can paste each URL into the below tag, then add the tags to HTML elements to make them appear on your site. But please proceed with caution! Never use the right-click method to obtain third-party website content without their expressed permission. As previously mentioned, referencing those images via HTML may still require that you attribute them to an individual and/or entity as their source online. ~ Hope this helps!

Hi crgalindo4632, in any event the following should not be regarded as legal counsel:

In my opinion, Homestead images should not be used by its members in any fashion under which the terms of our image licensing agreement does not apply, which mind you - does prohibit any use apart from Homestead websites. Though the policy is likely to be perceived negatively by Homestead members, it is written so as to preserve the relationship between Homestead and its image provider(s) and rightfully so. Just try to see this type of request from the perspective of those provider(s). If images supplied by Homestead were used in print and online (meaning reproduced without limitation, shared via social media, or even redistributed as original files) the value of said images would be greatly depreciated, and we can assume the result would be financial loss. Considering digital media piracy which has become so prevalent online these days, all of these scenarios are highly likely. Thus, subsequent to your being granted permission under such scenarios, Homestead could be held liable for any losses incurred by those image provider(s). Likewise, if you were to take the same course of action without Homestead's consent (referring to the aforementioned restrictions per Homestead's image licensing agreement) then the liability for any subsequent loss incurred by those image provider(s) would be "solely yours" to bear. Now, I do realize this is probably not the response you hoped for, but I wanted to do my part to help keep a fellow member safe. So please proceed with caution, and I sincerely hope this helps!

By the way, the above response is based on my own interpretation of Homestead's user agreements and prior knowledge of how image licensing works, to which an official member of Homestead may provide further guidance. ~ Regards

Thank you for the information above. I am looking to create music videos that will be linked to my website. Can I use the homestead images to create these videos since they will be linked to my website to help promote my music. I am not selling nor printing these images, I am only using them via the internet (YouTube) to send people to my website.